I'm all for good conversation! In fact I look forward to a great topic, covering it from every aspect, as well as other people's point of view. Yet,.... I'm not going to spend too much time talking about why publication is important to me. I'm not trying to convince anyone it should be important to them and why. If things like publication and social media numbers don't matter to you and have no effect on your biz, then we have nothing in common, as far as that goes. If magazine publication isn't bringing you biz and making you money, if having high social media numbers and a large fan base isn't bringing you biz and money, then that's totally on you. There are a million ways to make money, even a monthly income from gaining publication, or offering it to your clients. There are a million people, who because of endless advertising and promotion, have built a solid, and huge fan base. Advertising and marketing are essential for building your brand, and any brand. It takes time and money. And once you gain followers, its just like gaining magazine publication, the work continues and never ends. If you want to advertise in a mainstream magazine, sold on the store self, plan to pay a large amount of money, just for a single ad placed, in a single issue. Not only is it expensive, they won't just place any ad, any quality level of photograph, in a magazine like say Vogue, simply because you paid! Just like those type of high end fashion magazines don't have open submissions. I'm sure there are many, but none of the photographer's I've ever heard complain about how pinup magazines operate and don't pay, are producing anywhere near the high level of photography required to be qualified. And for that matter, they also don't have hundreds of thousands of followers. Exactly the same with amateur pinups, those with very little to no experience, no skills, no knowledge on pinup, complain about photographer's not paying them, that they have to pay to be photographed. Or when they also complain about pinup magazines not paying. They're are no where near qualified to get paid gigs, or to be offered free things from any company, they also don't have hundreds of thousands of followers. A photographer mentioned a model of his with 500k, and a magazine with only 1k, putting her on the cover and not even offering a free copy. Here's my take. 1st of all it's hard to believe that any professional model with 500 thousand fans, would even submit to a magazine with only 1k! What would be the ooubt exactly? I have only tens of thousands of fans, and I'm already at the point where I don't see any point in allowing a small pinup magazine to publish my work. Except, I'm a writer and columnist too. Having my articles published is an achievement within itself, and is building my resume and portfolio as a writer, not just a model. Then it comes down to showcasing your work. Much like winning awards or 1st place at a contest or pageant. Why do folks invest that much time and money, plus their hopes and emotions? Why does that award, that title of being the best, matter so much? Because it's an achievement, notitrity, and also showcasing your best, or you at your best! Photographers who are against magazine publication, most of them obviously don't have a problem with posting, and showcasing their work on social media and not getting a thin dime. Ok, so it's the fact that someone else is making money, from your photography, and you aren't. That I can understand, yet whos fault is it that you aren't making money from your photography or modeling? It begins with an agreement between the model and photographer. Who pays who, or if its equal trade. It takes a tremendous amount of work and time to produce and publish just a single issue! That deserves payment. If you're not initially getting paid by your clients, or by your photographers, that had nothing to do with publication. My clients want publication! There are pretty much no professional pinup photographer's here in Vegas. So therefore, there aren't any who guarantee publication, and are on staff at a pinup magazine. In Vegas there aren't very many professional pinup models, but there are so many who want to be a pinup and want to be in pinup magazines. So our initial agreement is, they book me to style and photograph them. They show up, pay me, get dolled up, get edited images and most of them gain publication. For any photographer charging aspiring and amateur models, specifically pinups, it's quite common to offer publication, and is a definite bonus. The reason it's a bonus, is because like I said, most models want to be in magazines, there's just no way around that! So, I say again, if none of the benefits of gaining publication and free publicity matter to you and aren't directly bringing you money, and or success, then by all means don't submit. Models and photographers who are against the way publication works should stick together, I'm sure there are plenty of you. I do feel if you land a cover, that magazine should go ahead and fork over the peanuts it cost, and send you a free copy. I honestly don't understand why it's not standard practice. At the same time, if you can afford a stylist or styling tools and supplies, brand new wardrobe, and to pay a photographer, how is it you don't have 20 bucks extra to purchase a single copy? One of my photographers enter a photography contest at an art gallery. He won 1st prize! If I'm not mistaken it was just an award, maybe along with like 100 bucks. He said the time it took to get that one shot, his equipment, which I know is all high end and expensive, getting the image printed on very high quality paper thru a professional printing company, then buying a nice, expensive frame,..... by the time he won the award and 100 bucks, he had already spent several hundred, and more if you consider all his equipment and software. Plus, add the hours and hours of his time shooting, and editing, then buying everything needed and entering! So he said to me, that people don't necessarily always enter contests for the prize money, its about the acknowledgement from his peers, about feeling a sense of accomplishment, about being selected as #1. And I'm sure to others that enter contests, it's also about adding that achievement to your resume and portfolio. As a modem myself, I can personally relate to wanting publication, but as a biz owner who works with model, amateur and professionals, it's important to them. My clients pay me and one of the goals they all have in common, is the desire to be featured in pinup magazines. So even if I wasn't a model 1st and foremost, I'm getting paid and models want publication. I can understand being selective in which magazine's, same as being selective in what model or photographer you work with, pay, or offer trade. Money is needed in modeling and photography. Money is needed in building a brand, radio or tv advertising, magazine ads, sponsored social media ads. Marketing is key and it's never actually free! Time is money and production is work. If reaching thousands or tens of thousands of people, that you are unable to reach on your own, showcasing your work to them, advertising to them, promoting to them, isn't of value, and social media numbers and building your brand isn't of value, and you're not directly making money from either, that's on you, period! I say do it all, advertise, promote and showcase your work in publication, and on social media, because both end up being what YOU make out of it! Advertising should always bring income and profit! While I'm on the subject. Speaking for myself, publication and high social media numbers are essential to achieving my 2 ultimate goals! I've had countless smaller and small goals that had to be achieved, just to pave the way for my ultimate goals! Without publication and by brand on social media, neither of my ultimate goals can be accomplished. It's like if I were to judge those that shoot trade, especially those that aren't selective. Why aren't professional pinups being paid by photographers? Why are so many amateur photographers even charging for low quality images? There are photographers who invest in their best and favorite model's. Not only do they offer them trade and aren't getting paid, they invest in stylists and or wardrobe, they have studios, high end equipment, or invest in locations like hotel suites. Then there are many who actually pay, select models. There are photographers that will never shoot trade, period! Usually it's those who spent years building their brand, years building a solid clientele bass, years of investing, and they are in demand. Everything they produce is high quality! Maybe if they are working on a new concept and need the images to advertise with, they'll offer a select model, a free shoot. Everyone had their own goals and reasons behind them. That's why its key to work with someone who had similar goals, as well as biz outlook and ethic. My clients want publication, I'm involved in publication heavily. The common goal is initially there. I have no interest for any reason, to go around offering free styling and photography! But I have numerous reasons why publication matters to me, making money is #1. There's one humongous goal I have, without publication, its literally impossible to achieve! Even if this was 15 or 20 years ago, before the internet, publication, and credibility within my industry, must be achieved 1st, before this ultimatel goal can be accomplished. Now we do have the internet, as well as pinup magazines that take substantial from the general public. Same concept still applies though. People have goals, big and small, usually the biggest ones came with smaller goals that were just as essential. Every time I'm published as a professional pinup model, it's an achievement within itself, but equally as important, it's essential to succeeding at way bigger goals. If I waited to be paid to shoot, I'd rare shoot, which would mean a much longer road to achieving my goals. Gotta have quality content, and often. If I waited for all my photographers to buy me photo shoot wardrobe, I'd rarely shoot. If I waited for my photographers to submit me for publication, I'd rarely be featured in pinup magazines. And, so on. I'm sure bragging rights is the only or main reason why many gals want to be in pinup magazines, so that's their personal goal, only for that reason alone. For the rest of us, for professional pinups that do want publication, there are many, many different reasons. I know of 10 top, well known, successful, professional photographers that specialize in pinup, and most of many of their clients want publication, especially the ones who are pinup models. When these photographer's advertise, their marketing to pinup models, of all levels and skill. They promote that they get models published. Some guarentee publication because they are a staff photographer at a pinup magazine. So it's quite clear there are endless pinup photographers who have a clientele base, that want publication in pinup magazines, and that's the main or only reason why it matters to them! Or these are pinup photographers known for getting their work in the biggest pinup magazines in the world, so professional and amateur pinups seem them out, and pay them. If showcasing your work on social media is bringing you new clients, and you are reaching the amount of people you need or want, then by all means if it ain't broke, why tru to fix it?! If social media numbers and building your brand isn't important or you are where you wanna be, minus large social media numbers and a huge fan base,..... the same, no point in messing eigh something that's working for YOU. If publication and a large fan base aren't making you money, or aren't helping you succeed at your future goals, by all means don't incorporate either into your plan for success. If magazines can make and are making money from featuring your content I guarantee you, YOU CAN TOO! If models are using images to promote and make money, to use for printing, autographing and selling photos, using to book paid work, using to enter contests, or using them for their website to make money from their fans,.... I guarantee you that YOU CAN TOO! Takes magazines, models, photographers, designers, performers, companies and anyone building a brand and social media fan base, a lot of work to gain hundreds of thousands of followers, and keep them! What about cross promotion? People who haven't full grasped the concept of marketing and advertising, don't value cross promotion, some don't even know what it is, or why it's valued by true professionals. Asking why an established, experienced, highly skilled, beautiful, professional model, who also has an enormous fan base, why she'd even submit to a small magazine, is like asking why would she shoot trade? Are you her photographer that's paying her? Are you a professional photographer, who's offering her trade? Why would a top pinup model with tens of thousands of hundreds of thousands of followers, huge port, endless achievements, highly skilled, etc., even be willing to work with a new who isn't bringing all that to the table, in return? If you have a small social media presence, wayyyyyy less of a following than your model, aside from you both benefiting from a productive shoot, are you cross promoting? And just like someone asked, why would a model with 500k allow a magazine with only 1k feature her on the cover, not paying her and no free copy. Well, where's the massive and influential cross promotion from you, that's really going to increase her following and bring her stats up?! Everyone had goals and everyone has their own personal reasons why they selected to go after those goals, as well as who, what, when, where and how! Ending this blog by saying, we all have choices. No point in comparing fashion magazines that pay staff photographers and agencies to pay models, when you're work doesn't meet the quality requirements, and you aren't qualified for those opportunities and positions, to begin with,..... Pinup Talk host Dianna Prince Francoise Arnoul There's no secret why many pinup photographers owners started their own pinup magazine. Simply put, pinup models want to be featured in pinup magazines, period! Most of their clients want publication.
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